Wednesday, December 24, 2014

It's very rare that we don't have a white Christmas where we live, but this year things are looking a bit brown. After a recent heatwave, a heatwave for December, that is; our yard was even thinking of turning green again.

Sunday, December 21, 2014

For the past, oh, eight years or so, our church has hosted a ladies Christmas tea as an outreach to our community. Becca and I usually do special music for it, and over the years, we've done our favorite Christmas songs that share the message of Christ's birth without being your ordinary Christmas hymn.

Well, this year when it came to picking out a song, we just couldn't think of one we hadn't done before.

So, we asked for help from our family music professor, aka Grandpa, to give us some ideas.

He taught us this beautiful little song, and since Christmas is fast approaching, we'd like to share it with you!

Friday, December 5, 2014

Even though Becca and I don't read much in the way of current YA fiction, we still have so much fun reading Cait's posts over at her old blog, The Notebook Sisters, and participating in her Beautiful People link-up.

Well, The Notebook Sisters has now changed to Paper Fury, and we're helping spread the word!

Thursday, November 6, 2014

The key word in that sentence is castor. As we said in our first post with this litter, we were expecting a mini Steve; an opal. However, as his fur began to grow in, we could see that this baby was brown, not grey.

Monday, October 27, 2014

Thursday and Friday were busy with house cleaning and food prep for the big day on Saturday. Most things were easy to put together ahead of time, leaving only the finishing touches to complete Saturday morning.

Sunday, October 19, 2014

The hosts of the Beautiful People link-up are doing something different for the next three months. With NaNoWriMo approaching (a rather crazy event, if I do say so), the theme for this month and next consecutive two will be about plotting, writing, and editing.

Sunday, September 14, 2014

Last week after church our pastor asked if Becca and I would like to do special music during offering each week. We would do it occasionally, usually per request of Pastor Daniel a few days in advance, so it's nice now we can just add preparing for that into our schedule for the week.

The song we picked was from a Patch the Pirate songbook (anyone one familiar with him?). We grew up singing Patch the Pirate songs in Sunday School, and while most of them can be a little on the silly side, (example: Temper Tantrum Tilly, Poochie Lip Disease, etc) there are some more serious ones that have really beautiful melodies.

So, with no consultation with Pastor about what he was going to preach on, we chose a song called "Wait on the Lord".

Tuesday, August 26, 2014

All right listen up, BBC. No more Jane Austen or Charles Dickens adaptations, the next mini series you should make is The Firm of Girdlestone by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle!

Do you think that will work?

I don't know what's up with me, but it looks like I'm going to do another book review! I never thought I'd be much good at them, but "The Beatles, God, and The Bible" was fun to write, so why not give it another go? Especially since it's a book I've just finished, and absolutely adore.

Wednesday, August 6, 2014

I know some of our readers are fans of oldies music and groups like the Beatles, so when I finished this book, I thought it would be really fun to share it on the blog.

The author, Ray Comfort, is the founder of a favorite ministry of our family's, Living Water Publications. Our mom was ordering gospel tracts online from them recently, saw this book, and thought Becca and I would enjoy it.

Back Cover:

"I'm a most religious fellow... I was brought up a Christian and I only now understand some of the things that Christ was saying in those parables."

-John Lennon

In The Beatles, God, and The Bible, international evangelist and best selling author Ray Comfort exposes the theological side of the world's most famous music group, offering unique and fascinating insight into the spirituality of the Fab Four.

The second book in a series of cultural and religious exposes, Comfort takes a trip down Abbey Road with John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr, showing the evolution of the group's spirituality from the very height of their fame in 1965, when all four Beatles professed to be atheists, to later on down the road when the Liverpool group started singing a much different tune. The Beatles, God, and The Bible is an in-depth look at the role of religion in shaping the lives of the most influential band in history.

The Beatles' music is iconic to the 60's era, and I've always enjoyed their early music, but I didn't know very much about them as people.

This book starts with a history of the band, how the members met, their rise to fame, and the break up of the group, and then has a more personal focus on each of the Beatles, beginning with John Lennon, and even John Lennon's murderer, Mark Chapman.

Ray Comfort is very frank about what the Beatles did and believed, but always brings it back to the Bible, and has personal applications for the reader as well.

Overall, it was a very good and fascinating read. I definitely would recommend it to anyone interested in The Beatles. It answered some interesting questions too, like: What did John Lennon mean when he said 'The Beatles are more popular than Jesus Christ"? Who is "Mother Mary" referring to in "Let It Be" ? And is "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" really a reference to LSD?

I was familiar with listening to Ray Comfort on a favorite radio show, Wretched Radio, but had never read one of his books before. His writing is really enjoyable, and I had his Australian accent in my head the entire time I read it. :)

It certainly makes you think, not only about the lives of the Beatles, but also about your own spiritual life.

One question my mom asked me when I finished reading the book was, "Were the Beatles Christians?"

Honestly, I don't know. The book doesn't answer that for sure.

What I do know is that John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Ringo Starr, and Mark Chapman as well, were/are sinful human beings in need of God's gift of salvation, just like everyone else; like you, and like me.

Did John Lennon and George Harrison repent and put their faith in the salvation God provided when He sent His Son Jesus Christ to die on the cross before they died? Only the Lord knows, but the more important question is-

Have you?

The Beatles, God, and The Bible is available at the Living Waters website, here.

1) What’s their favourite food? (Bonus: favourite flavor of chocolate!) Cream Puffs, she has a weakness for cream puffs. :) She also likes dark chocolate.2) What do they absolutely hate?
Shallow people fluttering around; flattering and gossiping about each other. She hates how so many people she knows are just pretty shells and inside there is absolutely nothing.

3) What do they enjoy learning about?
People, real people who did things that mattered. She loves the Bible and how God uses such everyday people for extraordinary things.4) Who is the most influential person in their life? Her mother. She was always calm and kind in any situation, thinking ahead and very practical. Now that she has passed, Cecile sees how unbalanced her family has become, and she tries to fill that role.5) What is their childhood fear? Monsters in the dark.6) What is something they have always secretly dreamed of doing, but thought impossible? Cecile has been surrounded by a whirl of high society, high-class "friends" and high expectations for her future: marry money and continue the cycle. She wishes for a quiet life, a large garden and a true love.

7) What is something they are impractically afraid of? Monsters in the dark. Yeah that's cheating, but I really want to go to bed. :)8) Are they a night owl or morning person? Morning. Which make the late night balls all the more intolerable in her eyes.

9) Do they say everything that pops into their head, or leave a lot unsaid? It depends on who she's with. She speaks freely with her brother and used to have long talks with her mother, but keeps her thoughts to herself otherwise.10) What are their nervous habits?
She watches, silently, and just observes. It really bugs her older sister.

I love my novel Long Road From Canaan, I really do, but there's something fun and satisfying about writing short stories. Just a little something you can write in a couple days or a week or two, go back and edit and tweak, and then finish.

Maybe this is simply because I've never finished a full length novel. But I do like to write short stories, and the character I'm going to introduce today is from one I'm getting ready to publish.

A novelette might actually be a better term for it, because it's about 16,000 words. I'm going to try an e-book format called Snippet, which I learned about from Go Teen Writers. There's just a few more things to do, but hopefully I'll be sending it in for the Snippet review process soon.

What Thou Need'st

Synopsis:Kendall Thatcher, a dutiful squire, thinks he's seen the worst of his master, the irascible Prince Bartholomew. However, things can indeed get worse; much worse.

When the Prince runs away, a princess from a neighboring kingdom vanishes, a dragon takes up residence in an abandoned castle, and two kingdoms near the brink of war; all this can be resolved only when Kendall and the Prince discover "what thou need'st"

I'm going to do this month's questions about Ruth, who is somewhat of a side character, but a favorite of mine.

Ruth becomes a close friend to one of the main characters, and has been really fun to write.

via Pinterest

1) What’s their favorite food? (Bonus: favorite flavor of chocolate!) Ruth's favorite food is her aunt's raspberry tarts. She's never had chocolate, as its a rare thing in the medieval world, but she would probably like white chocolate best.2) What do they absolutely hate?Secrets. She doesn't like keeping them, and she greatly dislikes when other people keep them from her. Maybe hate is too strong a word, but she isn't really the kind of person to hate anything. This doesn't come out so much in this story, but more so in the sequel. Oh yes, I'm already thinking of a sequel!

3) What do they enjoy learning about? Anything her father will teach her. Her father is a scribe in their little village, copying manuscripts and writing and reading letters for people. He taught her to read, and now she reads whatever she can get her hands on, which isn't much for a poor peasant girl. She also loves learning about cooking and knitting.4) Who is the most influential person in their life? Her father. Ruth's mother died a few years before the story takes place, but Ruth and her father have always been very close.5) What is their childhood fear? Ruth had a very pleasant childhood, although her family was poor, so, I honestly can't think of anything for this one!6) What is something they have always secretly dreamed of doing, but thought impossible? She has always wanted to live in a castle. 7) What is something they are impractically afraid of?
Frogs. She thinks they are nasty, slimy, despicable creatures.8) Are they a night owl or morning person?A morning person.9) Do they say everything that pops into their head, or leave a lot unsaid? She is pretty quick to speak, and loves asking questions.10) What are their nervous habits?When Ruth is nervous, she tends to babble and stumble over her words.

And that's all! I'll let Ruth sign off with a quote from the story.

"I am sorry, my aunt is calling. I have to go," Ruth said with a smile of farewell, and dashed off.

Thursday, July 24, 2014

I've been on a Dave Clark Five kick recently, so that song is stuck in my head. Did you know they started their group to raise money for their football (american= soccer) team, and nearly surpassed the Beatles in popularity?
Surprisingly, Dave Clark isn't the main singer of the group; Mike Smith is.
Dave Clark started the group, managed it, and played the drums.

But enough of my random trivia. :)

However, "Glad All Over" serves as a pretty good post title, as Becca and I are both very glad that Sarah Jane had a healthy litter on Tuesday!

Her grand total of kits is...

One.

Yep, just one.

It was quite surprising, but everything else seems normal and both kit and mama are doing wonderfully.

I guess it will be a spoiled little bunny, getting all of Mama's attention and lots of hugs from us. :)

We also have a long overdo Liebster Award from Paige to post about, so onto that next!

Thanks Paige!

As usual, Becca's answers will be blue and mine (Bethany's) will be purple.

1) What is the long term goal for your blog?To keep sharing what we are doing with friends and family.Ditto :)

2) What have you enjoyed the most about blogging so far?Meeting so many like minded young ladies.Ditto :)

Oh, that's hard! Maybe, going out to eat. Then no one has to wash dishes!

I'll have to agree and skip the dishes. :)

5) Series or stand alone books?I don't know if I can choose! Oh dear! Both, both favorites! :0

6) What version of the Bible do you prefer?

We use a few different versions in our house; New International Version, New King James Version, and English Standard Version, so it's difficult to say. Most of what I've memorized from the Bible is NIV, but for just reading and studying, I really like my NKJV study Bible.I really like the ESV.

7) Do you journal your studies in scripture?

I should, since I've been journaling more, but not really. If I have my Bible time in the evening, then I'll write down a verse or two that stood out to me.

Ummm... no. I like the idea of journaling but I am terrible at actually taking the time to do it.

8) If you were to host a period costume event, what era would it be?Victorian would be fun; a big victorian ball.Oh yes! yes yes yes! We could dance the polka :)

9) Do you spend your day in bare feet, socks, or shoes?Barefoot in the summer, otherwise, socks.Ditto :)

10) If you could have a gift card to any clothing store, including online, what would it be for?Modcloth. I love their vintage inspired styles!Either Modcloth or eShakti.

11) If I were to visit you in your hometown, what would be the first place you'd want me to see?Well... there's not much to see in our little town.

You could come to our house.

Eleven random facts about Bethany:

1) I like making up my own crochet patterns. 2) I want to learn how to play the lute. 3) I greatly dislike mushrooms. 4) Before our family decided to homeschool, I went to kindergarten twice. 5) Sometimes my eyes look more green than brown. 6) I have a bad habit of starting a book before finishing another. This goes for both reading and writing. 7) My middle name is Paige. 8) My favorite classic book is North and South. 9) I love random historical facts. 10) Ten is my Doctor. ;) 11) I have the same personality type as MacGyver.

Eleven random facts about Becca:1) I was afraid of getting contacts, but now I love them! 2) I have a wedding dress in my closet. 3) I have a pet monarch caterpillar named Rudy. 4) I was in kindergarden for two weeks. 5) I love to make movies (but it's hard to find the time and people to be in them.) 6) I sing whenever I can. 7) I am a perfectionist. 8) I don't like Jello, but I love gummy bears/worms. 9) I love to make people laugh :) 10) He's mine too ;) 11) I am the smoothie maker.

Our questions:
1) If you could have any animal as a pet, what would it be?
2) Do you ever read more then one book at once?
3) Who is your favorite superhero?
4) If you do daily devotions, do you prefer to do them in the morning, or before bed?
5) What is your favorite day of the week, and why?
6) Smoothies or milkshakes?
7) What is your favorite summer activity?
8) If you could spend a day with a fictional character, who would you spend it with, and what would you do together?
9) Skirts or shorts?
10) Do you have a nickname?
11)What would you name a black baby rabbit? (Really, any suggestions would be great!)

Sorry it's not 11 people, but I think 6 is a record for us! If you would rather not do an entire post about it, you are welcome to answer the questions in the comments too.
In fact, any one who wants to answer one or all of our questions in the comments are very welcome to as well.